One Last Halloween Nail Design

I know this is last minute, but I love this design so much I had to share it. I wanted to do sort of a take on candy corn but with a twist. This bright beauty is what I came up with, and I am absolutely in love with it!

This one isn't difficult to do, but it is fiddly. First I painted the nail with pink, orange, and yellow. I went with vibrant, almost neon colors because I wanted a strong, graphic look to them. I also didn't worry about a neat line, since I wanted that sort of candy corn feel to it.

Once that layer was dry, I very precisely laid out stripes using three pieces of striping tape next to each other, then skipping around that much space and adding another three pieces side-by-side. This gave me much thicker lines than I would have had just using the single pieces of striping tape. However, you could use whatever size tape you like.

I then painted the entire nail with a black creme polish. I pulled the tape pieces off while the polish was still wet, being careful not to smear the still-wet black. I let this dry for several minutes before adding a coat of quick-dry topcoat. That sealed the colors together and let them look glassy and seamless.

Can I just say how much this design makes me smile?? Seriously, I want to do all my nails like this! The bright colors look all the more bright next to the black, and I think thinner lines of color contrasted with thicker lines of black could be a fun spin on this idea. Clearly, I have some experimenting to do!

Speaking of, I may have some nail sets up for sale soon, so if you're looking for some sparkly nails for the holidays I just might be able to help you out! Keep an eye on this space... :D

Some polishes were provided by the brand for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

Sally Hansen Salon Effects - Halloween!

Hi there! Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated! I've been sick for entirely too long this time, but after lots of antibiotics and incredible amounts of rest, I'm finally feeling like a human being! Thanks to this, I can show you a couple of items that I want you to see before Halloween is over with!

If you're like me, you want to do fun Halloween nails to go with your costume, even if your costume is simple. Sally Hansen has just the solution for you! The ones I'm wearing in this image are called Numbskull, and they're just the cutest little skulls and crossbones!

There's one thing that I really dislike about these, although it's a small thing. The pattern is unidirectional, meaning it only goes in one direction. This means that if you happen to use both ends of the strips, you're left with skulls facing in two directions! I'm neurotic enough that this does bother me, although at a glance they look perfectly fine.

I also learned something else about these strips. When I applied them last night, I had sections of the strips that weren't actually sticking to my nails worth a darn, and I was sure they'd be peeling by morning. However, I pressed everything down as best I could and went on to bed. Once I woke up, I found that they'd settled down and are now solidly adhered to all my nails!

So don't worry if they aren't perfectly adhered right at first. They will settle down! Just press them down as well as you can and leave them alone for a few hours.

Overall, I really like this design. I also think it would be lots of fun as accent nails, or trimmed down to use as french tips. The little skulls are so cute!

Also, have I mentioned these strips tend to wear like iron? If you haven't read it, you can see my wear test for these starting here, where I rave about how amazing they are. I wound up finally removing the strips after 15 days of wear, and the only problem with them was a chip at the tip of one nail where I'd broken it!

This year's Halloween collection includes five designs- Numbskulls (shown here), How Corny (a silver-white background with repeating candy corn that looks the same whether it's upside down or not), Batty For You (black bats on a purple background that can be worn either way), Patch-O-Lanterns (orange jack o'lantern faces that can be worn either way),  and Spun For You (black spiderwebs on a silver background that can be worn either way). These can be found in drugstores near you for $9.99 a box. Go get some, before they're gone!

Sally Hansen Salon Effects in Numbskull was provided by the brand for consideration.

See my disclosure statement for more information.

OPI and Nicki Minaj

I know, I know. It's been a while. I'll blog more about this soon, but right now I'd rather focus on something that has me excited! Maybe this is leading into a better time...

You may have heard something about this... OPI is joining forces with Nicki Minaj to put out a fun, vibrant collection of polishes that are absolutely screaming my name! Honestly, I'm not that much of a fan of Nicki Minaj, mostly because I don't like the music she does. But I have to say, I respect the hell out of her as a businessperson and an artist!

Nicki is known for her vibrant, colorful style, and these polishes really do match perfectly. From the vibrant blue of Fly to the holographic gorgeousness of Save Me, these are all stand-out brights that call attention.

Ok, I have to admit, I'm not exactly jumping up and down over the idea of holographic bar glitter. Really? Hairy rainbow nails? But apparently, I'm in the minority, because it looks like bar glitter is coming back in a big way this season. Yippee.

I know, I know, quit yapping, Laynie. Show the colors!!

 

You can click each of those to make 'em bigger if you like. Is that blue insanely gorgeous or what? Also, notice that Super Bass is a shimmery shatter, sort of like Sally Hansen's Vintage Violet shatter polish. I'm not sure how alike they'll be in person, but they do remind me of each other! I really like what I'm seeing of Metallic 4 Life. It's got an almost Deborah Lippmann vibe to it! And I'm just not sure how I feel about Save Me...

Nicki Minaj by OPI nail lacquers contain no DBP, Toluene, or Formaldehyde, and feature OPI’s exclusive ProWide™ Brush for the ultimate in application. This limited edition promotion will be available beginning January 2012 at Professional Salons, including Beauty Brands, Beauty First, Chatters, Dillard’s, JCPenney, Pure Beauty, Regis, Trade Secret, and ULTA, for  $8.50 ($10.95 CAN) suggested retail for each nail lacquer. For more information, please call 800-341-9999 or visit www.opi.com. Follow OPI on Twitter @OPI_PRODUCTS and become a Facebook fan!

What are your thoughts? Do any of these colors excite you? Are you planning to rock Pink Friday on your nails as well as your iPod? Leave me a comment and let me know!

Press release was provided by the manufacturer for consideration.
Graphic adapted from original at http://mypinkfriday.com.

See my disclosure statement for more information.